6 ADMINISTRATIVE CORE 6.1 GOAL AND AIMS The goal of the Administrative Core is to support the EHSRC in achieving its vision and aims by the coordination, integration and assessment of Center cores, facilities, membership, activities and budgets. The specific aims of the Administrative Core are to: Aim 1) Provide direction and leadership to promote the vision, goals and aims of the Center; Aim 2) Provide interdisciplinary coordination and foster interactions between Center members, research cores, and facilities; Aim 3) Administer the Pilot Grant Program, Career Development Program and Director's Fund; Aim 4) Promote environmental health outreach through administrative support of COEC; Aim 5) Assess and document the productivity and effectiveness of Center activities; Aim 6) Foster interactions with NIEHS, Environmental Health Sciences (EHS) Centers elsewhere and with other EHS organizations; and Aim 7) Leverage institutional resources for the Center. The Administrative Core plays a central role under the guidance of the Internal and External Advisory Committees. The Administrative Core interacts with all Research Cores, Facility Cores, the COEC and the NIEHS Division of Extramural Research and Training (DERT) to foster interactions and advance the goals and aims of the Center as well as those of NIEHS. The Administrative Core provides assessment of the productivity and effectiveness of EHSRC components and determines the appropriateness of Center activities. The Core is responsible for the submission and management of competing, non-competing and supplemental grant proposals. The Core also responds to inquiries from NIEHS, the University or the College of Public Health regarding activities of the EHSRC and connects the Research Cores with COEC Activities. 6.7 DIRECTOR'S FUND A Director's Fund has been added by NIEHS as an option to the Core Centers program since our last competitive renewal. In this renewal application we have elected to institute a Director's Fund budgeted at $50,000/year. This fund will be under the purview of the IAC with final decisions made by the Center Director in consultation with the Deputy Director. Effectiveness of the Director's Fund allocations will be monitored by the Center Deputy Director and reviewed annually by the Internal and the External Advisory Committees. Anticipated uses of the Director's Fund include: 1) timely response to emerging environmental health issues or disasters; 2) purchase or replacement of a device essential to center facility operations: and 3) development of new technology identified as important to advancing center goals. We expected to allocate the Director's Funds for special projects that respond to an environmental disaster or a unique environmental health issue requiring a rapid response. Examples include devastating floods such as the Iowa Floods of 2008, large scale hazardous substance spills or explosions that pose a risk to public health. The Director's Fund may also be used to purchase or replace a key piece of Facility Core equipment, the need for which could not have been anticipated in the regular budgeting process (e.g. premature failure of a major piece of equipment, or the identification of a new technology that would be of great benefit to the Center).